The Ultimate Devil's Magnificent CEO

'Something was off about that old man just now. Very off!'

Zhou Fan's actions caught Chen Yao's attention. She had just turned to ask what had gotten into him when he suddenly lunged at her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and sent them rolling sideways across the ground for several rotations!

BANG!

A deafening crack echoed, nearly shocking Chen Yao senseless!

She looked at the spot where she had just been standing and saw a hole the width of a finger. Chen Yao was instantly at a loss, so stunned she seemed to have forgotten how to think!

"Damn, they're ruthless!"

Seeing the finger-width hole, Zhou Fan's expression changed. Not daring to linger, he continued to roll to the side while holding Chen Yao.

A sniper!

They actually have a sniper!

Luckily, this was the far outskirts of the city. Otherwise, that shot would have definitely attracted attention!

"Zhou... Zhou Fan, what's... what's going on?" asked the dazed Chen Yao, her voice trembling as she lay pinned beneath him.

"Sniper. Assassination."

Zhou Fan glanced down at Chen Yao, whose face was pale with fright, and said calmly, "Stay flat on the ground and crawl with me. Don't make a sound!"

After giving the quiet instruction, Zhou Fan took Chen Yao's hand, and they began to crawl through the grass toward a stream to the side.

If Zhou Fan remembered correctly, he had seen a small waterfall in that direction on his way here.

Although Chen Yao's limbs had gone weak with fear, she was obedient. Not daring to make the slightest sound, she followed Zhou Fan slowly and carefully.

After all, Zhou Fan's answer, though brief at only two words, was more than enough to prove just how dangerous the situation was. As a girl who grew up in a big city to a wealthy family, when had Chen Yao ever experienced anything like this?

If it weren't for the mental fortitude she'd developed from holding a high-status position for so long, which was far beyond that of an ordinary person, she likely would have been frozen stiff and crying her eyes out, let alone crawling.

"Can you swim?"

After crawling to the side of the waterfall, Zhou Fan waited for Chen Yao to catch up. Seeing her nod, he pointed to the cascade. "Get in the water now. These kinds of artificial waterfalls are usually hollowed out behind to be used as a small storage space. Hide in there. No matter what happens, don't make a sound, and don't come out!"

When he finished, he saw Chen Yao still looked dazed, so Zhou Fan couldn't resist rapping her on the forehead. "Got it?"

Chen Yao nodded forcefully and slipped quietly into the water. Even though the water was cold for the season, she didn't make a peep. Instead, she just looked up at Zhou Fan and asked with concern, "What about you?"

"Me? I'm waiting, of course. Waiting for some old friends!" A playful smirk touched the corners of Zhou Fan's mouth as he took out his phone and gave it to Chen Yao. "If I don't come back for you within an hour, call the second person in my contacts."

The moment he finished speaking, Zhou Fan acted unceremoniously. Without waiting to see if she was ready, he placed a large hand on her head and pushed her under the water.

After waiting a moment, once he felt Chen Yao had safely entered the space behind the waterfall, Zhou Fan slowly stood up. He walked over to a large nearby tree, took out a cigarette, and lit it. His gaze was deep as he looked toward several faintly visible figures in the distance.

Although his opponents had a sniper, they weren't fools. They knew Zhou Fan's strength and understood that after missing the first shot, a second chance would be hard to come by. After all, Zhou Fan was now on guard, even if he was standing right in the sniper's sights.

But the sniper also knew that while he was aiming at Zhou Fan, Zhou Fan had pinpointed his location through his killing intent. The moment he pulled the trigger, his target would dodge instantly. So, he could only wait for the perfect, one-shot-kill opportunity.

"Instructor, long time no see!"

Just then, under the swaying streetlights, the figures in the distance slowly approached, stopping ten meters from Zhou Fan. One of them, a lanky man with a characteristically Western face dressed in dark green combat fatigues, stepped forward with a smile to greet him.

"Viper, I'm guessing you'd rather not see me, right?" Zhou Fan smiled faintly as his cold gaze swept over the dozen or so figures behind the man. Only two or three of them looked familiar; the rest were strangers.

'Looks like the Netherworld King's Hall has recruited quite a few people in the past year. Although there's a clear gap in strength compared to the old members, they're no scrubs either!'

"As expected, Instructor, you know me well. If I had the choice, I really would have hoped to never see you again!" A smile spread across Viper's face, but his tone shifted in the next instant. "So, since you managed to escape a year ago, why reappear now? Wouldn't it have been better to just live quietly as an ordinary person in this small city?"